Remember when “one” used to be so amazingly exciting? Your first car, your first kiss, even your first job. You’ve probably experienced some pretty thrilling “ones” while building your personal brand as well. Every one of your early Twitter followers or blog subscribers probably knocked your socks off. Fast forward to today. Does every new “one” pump you up like it did before? If not…why not?
I’ll admit it. I remember my first few Twitter followers vividly. I couldn’t believe that each of them wanted to follow ME, and listen to MY silly tweets. I studied their profiles carefully and pondered how they might have found me. I also remember my first blog comment, and the proud feelings that surrounded it. But, unfortunately I must admit that today I sometimes forget to even check my new Twitter followers. Who are they, what are they about? I don’t have the slightest clue, because sometimes I forget the value of “one” – and fall into the trap of seeing “just another one”.
If I hadn’t written this article, I never would have noticed that my last few new Twitter followers included:
- Mary Boyle, @CareerExplore, a psychologist with IT, career, and accounting expertise (wow!).
- Matt Javit, @MattJavit, a passionate guy who runs JoeBots.com, helping average Joe’s get “wired and inspired”.
- Todd Schnick, @toddschnick, a radio show co-host and business blogger who is training for a half marathon.
Those three people sound pretty damn interesting, don’t they? Each one certainly offers something unique that I can learn from. BUT…I almost missed them. I almost let my laziness and take-people-for-grantedness prohibit me from seeing the value in paying attention to each of them. What about you? Are you missing valuable “ones” every day that simply fade into the crowd?
Technology has made it so we can automate just about everything – especially social media. Brilliant, right? We can be “social” without ever lifting a finger or actually paying attention to anyone. Except for one thing…those kind of actions turn social media into a wasteland of senseless, thoughtless, robotic self-broadcasting.
What can you do about it? Easy. Remember what it was like when “one” felt like a million. Make real connections. Make less connections if you have to – but just make them count. Did someone retweet you? Seek them out, and retweet something of theirs. Get a new blog comment? Find their best blog post and leave a thoughtful comment of your own.
None of this is rocket science, to be sure. Just a simple math lesson, and a subtle, self-directed kick in the ass to remind me that “one” is as valuable as ever.
Image credit, John Ayo.
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